Short Reads
The global pandemic has completely altered life as we know it in the short-term. In the long-term, a hopeful result would be openness to new political economic possibilities. Policies like modern monetary theory, single-payer healthcare, and universal basic income, seemingly beyond the pale of mainstream recognition before the pandemic, may now be given a fair shake. I want to make the case that another political-economic shift ought to be considered in light of the pandemic—economic democracy.
Although undocumented immigrants are often regarded as the sole victims of the uncertainty of U.S. immigration law reform, corporations have also been adversely affected. One of the focal points of this conflict over immigration is the presidential directive, DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). DACA is a discretionary grant of stay and work authorization by the federal government to undocumented immigrants, who were brought to the United States illegally as children. Signed into law as an executive order by President Obama, DACA has now been in place for the past seven years. Although there has been a growing sentiment across the United States to revoke DACA, many corporations actually favor continuing the program. Despite the lack of media attention to the corporate proponents, a coalition of some of the largest corporations in the United States has formed to lobby for the continued success and improvement of the program.
